more

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — The Cumberland County Sheriff's Office says the deputy wounded in a shoot-out with a murder suspect was hit by an armor-piercing bullet.

The Fayetteville Observer reports (http://bit.ly/1vlLk09) sheriff's office lawyer Ronnie Mitchell said Andrew Michaelis was using rounds which are illegal to possess.

Michaelis fired bullets from what authorities said was an AR-15 assault rifle into his father-in-law's house on July 30. He discharged a 30-round magazine while shooting from his truck, killing his father-in-law and the man's 10-year-old grandson before he died in a shootout with law enforcement.

Deputy Joshua LaFave was hit in the chest, back and shoulder during the gun battle. Deputy Jamie McLeod suffered bruising on her torso when a bullet lodged in her equipment belt.

Investigators want to find out if Michaelis had modified the gun to fire as an automatic weapon, Mitchell said.

"We're waiting to get the gun back," he said.

The gun is in the hands of the State Bureau of Investigation, which is investigating the officer-involved shooting.

LaFave, the most seriously injured deputy, has been transferred from Cape Fear Valley Medical Center to UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill for specialized surgery, Mitchell said.